Man arrested with crack during search for fugitive

by Wes Mayer

A man was arrested by Newnan Police Department investigators Wednesday after a baggie of crack cocaine was found floating in an apartment’s toilet.

Around 9 p.m., investigators looking for a wanted fugitive, Patrick “Pancake” Jones, received an anonymous tip of his whereabouts at an apartment on the 100-block of Dodson Street, said Sgt. Mark Cooper with the Newnan Police Department’s drug unit. According to Cooper, when investigators arrived and knocked on the door, about 20 to 25 people inside started running in every direction.

Everyone was detained and the resident of the apartment gave investigators consent to search inside for Jones, Cooper said. Investigators didn’t find Jones, but they did find a baggie containing suspected crack cocaine floating in the apartment’s toilet.

According to Cooper, investigators then asked the contained group of people to whom the cocaine belonged, and Monte Baugh, Jr., 24, admitted the baggie was his — he also described to investigators where they would have found it.

Due to the weight of the suspected crack cocaine and the packaging, Baugh was charged with the possession of cocaine with intent to distribute. Investigators also found another person there, Tedale D Ragland, 25, who had warrants out for a violation of probation. Both were transported to the Coweta County Jail.